The Working Week 16: Laurence Haughton
This week, Wayne is joined by writer, speaker and management consultant, Laurence Haughton to talk about Robert Nardelli, Chrysler - and why Americans are so reluctant to say what they really mean.
Welcome to the Working Week podcast by Management-Issues.com with the latest round up of news, views and opinion that have caught Wayne’s Turmel’s attention.
First up, Wayne has some bad news for organisations who are worried that their staff lack motivation. Because there may be nothing they can do about it.
According to research from Cass Business School, levels of commitment and employee engagement vary greatly between nations and cultures and are closely linked to the overall happiness of a population.
01:22 - If you were never top in the class popularity stakes, check out Dr Rob Yeung’s advice to a manager who is not only feels challenged by the social demands of his workplace, but carries the biggest management cross of all – he hates golf.
01:47 - Wayne continues by looking at research from DDI and Monster.com which highlights that poor interviewers are driving away talent. Worryingly, two-thirds of job seekers report that the behaviour of interviewers has a direct impact on whether or not they will take a job.
02:41 - On a more light-hearted note, consultancy Croner have won this year’s Management-Issues annual competition for the most creative packaging of a gratuitously boring workplace survey. Take it away, Elvis….
03:09 – Wayne introduces this week’s guest, writer and speaker Laurence Haughton, author of It’s Not What you Say…It’s What You Do.
03:40 – Laurence explains the thinking behind the new Naked Strategy podcast which he and Max Mckeown has just launched on Management-Issues.com
05:27 – He then gives Wayne an up-date on the Chrysler story with the announcement of the appointment of CEO Bob Nardelli and the discussion around this news.
07:39 – Laurence believes that at Home Depot, Nardelli’s real problem was that he was not able to get enough buy-in.
09:31 – Laurence believes that there is a real benefit in having experienced a problem situation and that there is a strong probability that Bob Nardelli will have learned from his experience and will be able to apply this learning to the challenges ahead.
10:16 – Wayne asks about the challenges of a CEO changing sectors.
11:08 – According to Laurence every business has its own unique profile yet all face similar challenges. The ability to execute or to deliver is the same across all organisations. This is a transferable skill across sectors. General Electric, Home Depot and the automotive business share a commonality.
13:00 – Finally, Laurence has some thoughts on a survey which suggested that UK workers think their
managers are dithering and incompetent.
13:30 – He welcomes this open and frank approach and believes that in the USA people has been taught so much marketing clap trap that they never say what they are really thinking. In Australia, UK and Canada, people are more inclined to say what they think.
